Pictures: Japan quake and tsunami 2011

Friday 11 Mar 2011 8:42 am

Pictures: Japan quake and tsunami 2011

This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) image released on March 11, 2011 shows model runs from the Center for Tsunami Research at the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory showing the expected wave heights of the tsunami as it travels across the Pacific basin. The largest wave heights are expected near the earthquake epicenter, off Japan. The wave will decrease in height as it travels across the deep Pacific but grow taller as it nears coastal areas. In general, as the energy of the wave decreases with distance, the near shore heights will also decrease (e.g., coastal Hawaii will not expect heights of that encountered in coastal Japan). Tsunami waves rolled thousands of miles across the Pacific Ocean after a massive earthquake off Japan and washed ashore in Hawaii early March 11, 2011, but the tourist hotspot appeared to escape major damage. As sirens blared and Hawaiian authorities rapidly evacuated low-lying areas, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre reported

Flames rise from houses and debris half submerged in tsunami in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture (state) after Japan was struck by a strong earthquake off its northeastern coast Friday, March 11, 2011.

Natural gas storage tanks burn at the Cosmo oil refinery in Ichihara city, Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported.

In this video image taken from Japan’s NHK TV, cars are washed away in a coastal area of Kamaishi, Iwate prefecture Japan Friday March 11, 2011 following a massive earth quake. A magnitude 8.9 earthquake slammed Japan’s northeastern coast Friday, unleashing a 13-foot (4-meter) tsunami that swept boats, cars, buildings and tons of debris miles inland. Fires triggered by the quake burned out of control up and down the coast.

An aerial view of a tsunami swamped Sendai Airport in northeastern Japan March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a ten-metre (33-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline. There were several strong aftershocks and a warning of a 10-metre tsunami following the quake, which also caused buildings to shake violently in the capital Tokyo. A tsunami warning has been issued for the entire Pacific basin except for the mainland United States and Canada following a huge earthquake that hit Japan on Friday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

An aerial view of a tsunami swamped Sendai Airport in northeastern Japan March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a ten-metre (33-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline. There were several strong aftershocks and a warning of a 10-metre tsunami following the quake, which also caused buildings to shake violently in the capital Tokyo. A tsunami warning has been issued for the entire Pacific basin except for the mainland United States and Canada following a huge earthquake that hit Japan on Friday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

Broken windows of a building are seen after an earthquake in Tokyo , March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a ten-metre (33-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline. There were several strong aftershocks and a warning of a 10-metre tsunami following the quake, which also caused buildings to shake violently in the capital Tokyo. A tsunami warning has been issued for the entire Pacific basin except for the mainland United States and Canada following a huge earthquake that hit Japan on Friday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said.

A video image taken from NHK shows a tsunami caused by an earthquake, sweeping across land on March 11, 2011 in Sendai, Japan. An earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter Scale has hit the northeast coast of Japan causing Tsunami alerts throughout countries bordering the Pacific Ocean.

Part of houses swallowed by tsunami burn in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture (state) after Japan was struck by a strong earthquake off its northeastern coast Friday, March 11, 2011.

Smoke rises over the skyline following the earthquake on March 11, 2011 in Tokyo, Japan.

Natural gas storage tanks burn at a facility in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo, Japan March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported. There were several strong aftershocks and a warning of a 10-metre tsunami following the quake, which also caused buildings to shake violently in the capital Tokyo.

Giant fireballs rise from a burning oil refinery in Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture (state) after Japan was struck by a strong earthquake off its northeastern coast

A tsunami carries boats across waters in Kamaishi city port in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011. An earthquake measuring 8.8 struck off the northeast coast of Japan on Friday, shaking buildings in the capital Tokyo, causing “many injuries”, at least one fire and triggering a 10-metre (30-ft) tsunami warning, NHK television and witnesses reported.

A screen grab taken from news footage by Japanese public broadcaster NHK on March 11, 2011 shows the power plant on fire in Ishihara. A massive 8.9-magnitude earthquake shook Japan, unleashing a powerful tsunami that sent ships crashing into the shore and carried cars through the streets of coastal towns.

Tsunami waters engulf the runway at Sendai airport in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit north-east Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported.

A screen grab taken from CCTV news footage on March 11, 2011 shows a tsunami hitting the shores of Sendai following an earthquake-triggered tsumani. A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake shook Japan, unleashing a powerful tsunami that sent ships crashing into the shore and carried cars through the streets of coastal towns.

In this image made off Japan’s NHK TV video footage, vehicles are washed away by tsunami in coastal area in eastern Japan after Japan was struck by a magnitude 8.9 earthquake off its northeastern coast Friday, March 11, 2011.

A fire burns at a natural gas storage facility in Chiba in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported.

The area is flooded by tsunami in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture (state) as Japan was struck by a magnitude 8.9 earthquake off its northeastern coast Friday, March 11, 2011.

A tsunami carries buildings (bottom) across waters in Kamaishi city port in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported.

This graphic provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows estimated tsunami travel times following a massive 8.9-magnitude earthquake hit Japan on March 11, 2011. The quake unleashed a monster 10-metre high tsunami that sent ships crashing into the shore and carried cars through the streets of coastal towns in Japan. The massive quake triggered a tsunami warning for virtually the entire Pacific Ocean, reaching as far as Australia, South America and Antarctica. However local officials in Australia subsequently ruled that the Tsunami posed no threat there.

Tsunami waters engulf Sendai in this still image taken from video footage March 11, 2011. A massive 8.9 magnitude quake hit northeast Japan on Friday, causing many injuries, fires and a four-metre (13-ft) tsunami along parts of the country’s coastline, NHK television and witnesses reported.